January 30, 2008 - Candidates running for the four seats on the Charles A. Beard School Board up for election in May will need to stay within their own townships when collecting signatures for their petitions of nomination.

According to Nancy Marcum, Henry County deputy clerk in charge of voter registration, signatures collected from registered voters who live outside a candidate's township of residence will not count on the candidates's petition.

Although all voters within the CAB school district's will be able to vote for all candidates in the May 6 election, Marcum said rules adopted by CAB require people signing a candidate's petition to live in the same township as the candidate.

Of the CAB School Board seats up for election, two represent Wayne Township and there is one each from Greensboro Township and Rush County's Ripley Township. These seats are currently held by Board President Mike Fruth (Ripley Twp.), Debi Ware (Greensboro Twp.), Leah Kopp (Wayne Twp.) and Larry Selvidge (Wayne Twp.).

Persons interested in running for any of these seats have until noon on February 22 to file a petition of nomination with the Clerk of the Henry Circuit Court. State law requires the petitions to be signed by the number of voters equal to two percent of the total vote cast at the last election for secretary of state in the election district that the candidate seeks to represent - a number not expected to exceed 20.

As of Tuesday afternoon, only one person, Greensboro Township incumbent Ware, had filed a petition of nomination for May's election. For more information about becoming a school board candidate, contact Marcum at (765) 529-9310.